Digimon: I really didn't want to be the Digimon Emperor!

He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping across the expectant faces in the room before finally settling on Cheng Yuan: "Class representative, guess what this slot is for?"

Cheng Yuan was staring blankly at the slot when he was suddenly called on, and he almost bit his tongue: "Huh? Uh... it's... it's for swiping a card?"

The whole audience burst into laughter.

He pointed to the slot: "This is the tactical chip slot. The Arc Light Machine is equipped with a more powerful computing core. Its core function is to instantly enhance the abilities of Digimon in battle by inserting specific tactical chips."

Xu Xin's tone carried a hint of popular science: "Our Dongda Kingdom's digital chip technology has been striving to catch up with Shenying Kingdom. The significance of the Arc Light Machine lies in the fact that it allows tamers to provide powerful, real-time temporary boosts to their Digimon through tactical chips during battle, based on the ever-changing situation."

Zhao Lu raised her hand and asked, "Teacher, what's the difference between this and regular data reinforcement?"

"Good question." Xu Xin snapped his fingers. "Ordinary data enhancement is permanent, but it takes time to absorb. Tactical chips..." He winked mysteriously, "are plug-and-play add-ons!"

He listed examples: "Imagine your Digimon suddenly gaining temporary weapons, short-term bursts of speed, brief flight abilities, a significant boost to specific attribute energy... and even..." He deliberately dragged out the words, "it can even cast an energy shield on its tamer!"

A murmur of amazement and discussion erupted from the audience. This feature sounds incredibly tempting! It's practically a godsend in battle!

Cheng Yuan's pupils contracted slightly. A Digimon Arc Machine? A Tactical Chip? This setting… it's so similar to the D-Ark Arc Machine from the third season of Digimon in his past life! Except, in the anime, the children used cards whose symbolic value outweighed their actual cost, while in this real world, they became expensive "Tactical Chips" that needed to be purchased with real money!

His mind raced: chip enhancement…weapons, acceleration, flight, energy amplification…it all sounded wonderful, a weapon capable of instantly changing the course of battle. But Cheng Yuan knew perfectly well—this kind of thing was an absolute money pit! Each tactical chip that could bring substantial improvement was probably as expensive as a high-end data cube, or even more! And that was just the price of the chip itself; what about the Arc Light Tyrannosaurus Rex machine itself? Absolutely astronomical!

"Teacher!" Kang Zhaodi raised his hand just in time, asking the question Cheng Yuan wanted to ask: "Are these chips expensive?"

Xu Xin's smile grew even brighter: "Well... the more powerful the chip, the more... expensive it will be. But we're still in the testing phase, so there's no price yet. However, our initial estimate is that the basic tactical chip will cost over 10 in the early stages."

The training ground fell silent instantly; you could hear even the breathing of the Digimon. Cheng Yuan mentally calculated his savings, beads of sweat forming on his forehead—this price was practically robbery!

Xu Xin's subsequent words confirmed his conjecture: "Professional animal trainers will be prioritized for the use of arc light machines. In the future, this technology will gradually become available to the general animal trainer community."

"Gradually popularized..." Cheng Yuan pondered the word in his mind, a bitter smile appearing on his lips. How long would this "gradual" process take? How could a civilian version of the Digivice be replaced so quickly? The high cost meant that the Arc Light Digivice would be the exclusive equipment of a few elites and "pay-to-win players" for a considerable period of time.

—As expected, the world of professional beast tamers is a true abyss of pay-to-win!

This realization was like a bucket of cold water poured over Cheng Yuan's head, which had just been buzzing with excitement from being selected for the honors class. Aspiring to become a professional animal trainer, he seemed perpetually on the path of financial hardship. He subconsciously touched the ordinary Digivice in his pocket, then glanced at the Arc Light machine in Xu Xin's hand, a machine representing the future and power, and a sense of urgency and a deeper "financial anxiety" welled up inside him.

His current wealth accumulation is essentially the result of cash subsidies; he loses money on every sale he makes, slowly climbing the ranks. To catch up with these true "whales" (players who spend real money), acquire the Arc Light Machine, and purchase powerful tactical chips... the road ahead is long.

Xu Xin looked at the group of young people, his serious expression softening slightly: "With this Arc Machine, tamers can truly participate in battles; combat is no longer solely the domain of Digimon. In the wild, in the Digital World, you may encounter all sorts of unexpected situations. Trusting your companions and looking out for each other is sometimes more important than individual strength."

"If you become professional animal trainers in the future, this will even become your standard equipment, with subsidies directly provided to your home by the Animal Trainers Association."

Hearing this, the top students became even more eager to become professional animal trainers.

He packed up the training equipment, turned and walked towards the exit: "Tomorrow at the same time, we will continue with more effective training. Class representatives, stay and clean up the area."

Cheng Yuan: "......" How come this blessing is still not over?

After everyone left, Cheng Yuan sighed as he packed up the training equipment, complaining to the little dog, "If I had known being a class representative would be this tiring, I should have firmly refused and let that girl Zhao Lu do it herself..."

The little dog suddenly perked up its ears: "Cheng Yuan, someone's coming."

Cheng Yuan turned around and found that Xu Xin had returned at some point, holding two bottles of sports drinks in her hand.

"You've worked hard." Xu Xin handed him a drink. "Have something to drink before you get back to work."

Cheng Yuan accepted the gift, flattered and grateful, saying, "Thank you, teacher!"

Xu Xin leaned against the wall, her gaze falling on the little dog beast: "Your little dog beast... is very special."

Cheng Yuan's heart tightened: "Extra cute? Extra handsome? Or extra..."

"It's incredibly incongruous," Xu Xin interrupted his narcissism. "I heard you evolved it to the growth stage in just two weeks? To evolve to the growth stage in such a short time, you must have a secret. Whether it's your extraordinary encounter or a family secret, I have no intention of probing. Actually, I've reached this point because of my own circumstances. But what I want to say is that its divine attribute is very strong, but its basic qualities can't keep up. It's like a bicycle with an airplane engine installed; it's fast, but it might fall apart at any moment..."

Cheng Yuan was speechless. This was precisely the problem he had been worried about recently—the puppy beast's evolution speed was too fast, and it wasn't yet proficient in controlling its own power.

"Teacher, what should we do?" Cheng Yuan asked, unusually serious.

Xu Xin didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "You know that Agumon evolved into the Virus type BlackGreymon, a Dark-type Virus, which should be extremely prone to losing its sanity. Do you know how I kept BlackGreymon sane?"

Cheng Yuan shook his head, and the little dog also tilted its head curiously.

"Because I spent three whole months training it in the volcanic zone of the digital space." Xu Xin's eyes became deep. "Every day, it was accompanied by lava and fought with volcanic beasts, using the most extreme methods to solidify its mastery of every bit of power, even the power of darkness."

"Evolution is not the end, but a new beginning." He crouched down and gently patted the little dog beast's head. "Jade must be carved to become a gem. Your partner's divine power is very pure and has great potential, but it needs more systematic refinement. Starting tomorrow, I will develop a special training plan for you two."

Cheng Yuan's eyes lit up: "Really? Thank you, teacher!"

"Don't get too excited yet." Xu Xin stood up, revealing a meaningful smile. "My special training... is quite 'exciting'."

Watching Xu Xin's departing figure, Cheng Yuan suddenly had a bad feeling. He looked down at Little Dog Beast: "Little Dog Beast, do you think... it's too late for us to apply to withdraw from the honors class?"

The little dog covered its eyes with its paws: "Don't let me look down on you..."

Just as Cheng Yuan started tidying up, Zhao Lu suddenly returned and helped him.

Then more and more people came back, and they all came back together to pack up.

Kang Zhaodi's burly figure appeared at the doorway, followed leisurely by the pangolin. Next came Wang Wei and Yang Tao, the tamers of the hedgehog beast and the mineral beast, respectively…

One after another, the students from the top classes returned, each bringing their own Digimon partners.

"You guys..." Cheng Yuan was stunned, and almost dropped the training protective gear in his hand.

"Don't misunderstand," Zhao Lu pouted, and the silver gear beast had already begun to tidy up the scattered training equipment. "We just don't want to be put to extra training by Teacher Xu tomorrow."

Kang Zhaodi picked up a box of training balls and said, "Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and finish this so we can eat."

Looking at these classmates who were saying one thing but meaning another, Cheng Yuan suddenly felt a lump in his throat. He squatted down, patted the little dog's head, and whispered, "Looks like these kids are actually kind of cute. Let them continue being class representatives for now."